NFL: Saints defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo sees light

Sunday

Sep 23, 2012 at 6:00 AM

Rich Garven NFL

It’s been a brutal start for the Saints and Steve Spagnuolo, their new defensive coordinator.

New Orleans, which went 37-11 with three playoff appearances and a Super Bowl victory from 2008-11, is 0-2 for the first time in five years heading into today’s home game against the equally winless (and far more dysfunctional) Kansas City Chiefs.

Defense, as in a total lack thereof, has been the culprit.

The Saints surrendered 924 yards and 75 points in losses to the Washington Redskins, who aren’t very good, and the Carolina Panthers, who aren’t anything special. They rank last in the league in yards allowed and are tied with the Chiefs for last in points allowed.

“You look in the mirror first,” Spagnuolo told the New Orleans media after moving up his weekly press conference from Friday to Monday because he felt it was important to address the understandable concerns of the team’s loyal and mostly long-suffering fans.

It’s obviously not the start that Spagnuolo, who hails from Grafton, envisioned when he joined the Saints in January after being fired as coach of the St. Louis Rams following a three-year run in which he went 10-38.

“It’s a winning business,” he said. “So when you don’t win, it hurts.”

The Saints have a host of problems. They haven’t been able to generate a pass rush (three sacks) or produce turnovers (one), and they’re allowing big pass plays (12 of 20-plus yards) despite utilizing a zone-heavy scheme designed to keep that from occurring.

“Again, I don’t think we’re that far off,” Spagnuolo said. “But if you get stuck on stats, you’re going to think I’m full of baloney.”

Speaking of numbers, here are two that came up during his 17-minute press conference: When Spagnuolo was in his first season as the Giants’ defensive coordinator, in 2007, his unit allowed 80 points and 846 yards while losing the first two games.

The defense turned it around after that, holding eight of its final 14 opponents to 17 points or less as the Giants won 10 games and reached the playoffs, where they won four straight games, including Super Bowl XLII against the previously perfect Patriots.

“There was nothing magical — it just kind of came together,” Spagnuolo said after mentioning he had gone back to his notes from that season to see if he could find some clues to help solve his current mysterious crisis.

“But I do know one thing — it came together because nobody pointed fingers, everyone stuck together, and then just grind their way out of it. That doesn’t mean because it happened in ’07 and I’m sitting here now that’s going to happen again. That’s certainly the hope.

“I know that if we stick together, there’s enough character, enough good players in that locker room, certainly on the defensive side of the ball, that we can get this thing right.”

Sticking together and staying the course were two themes repeatedly emphasized by Spagnuolo, an eternal optimist.

“We all realize we’re going through some growing pains, but I think the growing pains will pay off in the end,” he said. “I strongly believe in two things: I believe in our players and our coaches and I believe in our scheme. Unless something falls out of the sky (translation: a miracle), that’s not going to change.”

The Ravens will host the Patriots tonight and then welcome the Cleveland Browns to M&T Bank Stadium on Thursday. That’ll cap a stretch in which they will have played four games in 18 days, three of them in prime time. Insane and one of the most obvious examples of the league talking about player safety being a priority until it interferes what the networks want. About the only thing that has made the situation manageable is that three of the games were at home and the other was right up the road in Philadelphia. … Interesting matchup in the Arizona desert today as the Cardinals, who are aiming for their first 3-0 start since 1974 (when they played in St. Louis), take on the Eagles, who are the first team in league history to win their first two games by one point each. … Bills running back C.J. Spiller is averaging 10 yards a carry, making him the first player to average double digits in the first two games of a season since Jim Brown (11.3) did so for the Browns in 1963. The Patriots will get an up-close look at Spiller, the ninth overall pick in the 2010 draft, when they travel to Buffalo next Sunday. … Old friend Adam Vinatieri’s 53-yard winning field goal last week was the 23rd of his career that came in the final minute of the fourth quarter or in overtime. That tied him with Matt Bahr, another ex-Patriot, and Jason Elam for most clutch kicks since 1970. … Tom Brady, Peyton Manning and Drew Brees all were on the losing end last week. That has happened only once before, in Week 16 in 2002.

Some quick hits and (hopefully) useful numbers with regard to this week’s games: The Bears have won five straight home games with Jay Cutler at quarterback as they welcome the Rams to Chicago. … The Cowboys have won four straight against the Buccaneers, including 31-15 last year. … The Jaguars have won three of the past four meetings with the Colts, including by 14 and six points last season. … Six of the last eight games between the Jets and Dolphins have been decided by seven points or less. … The Cardinals defeated the Eagles, 21-17, last year in Philadelphia … Broncos QB Peyton Manning is 16-2 all-time versus the Texans, who are off to their third straight 2-0 start. Houston’s undefeated run ended in Week 3 in both 2010 and ’11.

Some random thoughts in no particular order:

•The Giants really flashed their championship chops last week. After putting up 25 points in the fourth quarter to rally past Tampa Bay on Sunday, they went on the road and destroyed Carolina four days later despite being seriously short-handed due to injury.

•Which leads us to the next point: Where Eli Manning ranks on the current quarterback hierarchy is a matter of opinion, but there’s no one better when a comeback is required and 15 minutes remain.

•The Patriots increasingly have started to play the “it wasn’t a good week of practice” card after a loss. For an organization that doesn’t make excuses, that sounds suspiciously like one.

•Those Thursday night games on the NFL Network are painful to watch and worse to listen to. Just flip over to the college game playing at the same time on ESPN, and you’ll see and hear the difference.

•ESPN the Magazine recently released its annual rankings of pro sports franchises, and the Red Sox placed 117th out of 122 teams. Ouch! The Celtics were 20th, the Patriots 22nd and the Bruins 58th.

Material used in this report was collected from personal interviews, wire services, websites, and league and team sources. Rich Garven can be reached by e-mail at rich.garven@verizon.net or rgarven@telegram.com.

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